Member Reviews

First of all, I'd like to say thank you to NetGalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I really, really wanted to like this book. The concept and the story were good, and I love a fairy tale retelling, but the way it was written really took away from this for me.
I really wanted to enjoy it, but ultimately I had a really hard time with the writing style.
Overall, the book was a fine read, but wish it had been slightly more condensed and streamlined.

Was this review helpful?

An origin story of Captain Hook, this book sometimes felt like a fever dream. Some of the dialogue was not effectively written and it was easy to become confused in regards to who was speaking or what was happening to whom. At times, the story lagged and I felt bogged down in the story/world-building. (I know this is sometimes a necessary aspect of fantasies.)
This book is full of flawed characters, poor choices, and questionable morals….but it’s also full of children in an impossible situation who seem to grow up mentally if not physically. Many seemed simultaneously young and ancient. Most, if not all, of the characters were hard to connect with.
It was an interesting concept that I feel probably could have been executed more successfully. I would not read it again, but I do not regret having read it.
*I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review of this book.*

Was this review helpful?

I'm very conflicted about what to say in this review. On one hand, I felt that the concept and plot were good and held a lot of potential. It managed to be original whilst retelling a childhood classic which is very difficult to do. The characters were interesting and Vanessa Raccio did an incredible job of developing them, giving them personality and background. Making them human.

On the other hand, I felt that about halfway through the book she lost the story she had originally been trying to tell. Which made the story feel quite fragmented to me. Almost as if she had changed her idea for the story halfway through. At this point I felt like the characters changed as well and instead of being further developed, allowing them to grow. It felt like I was being introduced to new characters that didn't fit what I had already discovered about them.

Overall, I enjoyed reading the book. Though it fell slightly flat for me. The way that the story ended was a lovely hook that still has me wanting to read the next book in the series despite some of my misgivings. So whilst not my favourite book I would still recommend giving it a read

Thank you to Netgalley for the free ARC, the opinions I have given are all my own and are freely given

Was this review helpful?

2.5 stars. The premise drew me in: a Peter Pan retelling with the origin story of Captain Hook.

I really wanted to love it, but unfortunately, I found the story a bit dense and confusing at times. I feel like it just wasn’t quite for me, but can appreciate the story and I hope others enjoy it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced electronic copy for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

This is an interesting take on Peter Pan retelling. I love couple first chapters, alternating between present and past of Lou and Jay, but since she fell to the lake and went to "neverland" I kinda lost the feeling from those first chapters. The story took unexpected turn for me, and although I still enjoyed the rest of the book, I do wish we will have more tension or even romance, in haunting bittersweet mood like when the story started. Overall, it was great.

Was this review helpful?

#LightoftheSecondStar #NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc copy of this novel.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc. All opinions are my own.

I truly wanted to enjoy this book, and a part of me did. It took me probably two weeks to actually get through the first couple chapters, and when I finally did, I still felt as though I wasn’t truly INTO the story.

As far as retellings go, it wasn’t terrible. I enjoyed the basic idea of the story, but found myself wanting more. I understand the theme of the story, but I feel as though it was overwhelmingly present, leaving no room for any positivity.

I found myself enjoying the adventure they went on and having them lol face their pasts more than I thought I would, and the ending was beautiful between Lou and her sister.

Was this review helpful?

Light of the Second Star follows the origin story of Captain Hook as a child. Jay starts off as number 2 to Peter traveling back and forth from the island to the land of the grown posing as an imaginary friend to kids and need. But when Jay’s favorite friend grows up too fast and Peter forbids him to go back to see her again the rift sets off a course of events that changes the lives of both Jay and his friend Lou, who is barely considered a grown.

The concept of a Captain Hook origin story immediately captured my attention and I was very excited for this book. I do think the concept was well executed, however while I see that the past storyline was necessary, I found myself much more interested in the present, which made the book feel a little slow for me especially early on when most of it focused on the past. I did enjoy this overall though and think anyone interested Peter Pan stories or fairy tale retellings in general would like this. Thank you NetGalley for an advanced e-copy of this book!

Was this review helpful?

I really wanted to enjoy this book more than I did. There was a feeling of hopelessness throughout & it truly bothered me. Lou was frustratingly baseline.
I received an eARC through NetGalley for my unbiased review.

Was this review helpful?

Whilst I admittedly haven't yet read the original Peter Pan story - I love the idea of it so when this new release became available to request on NetGalley, I couldn't help myself.

Lou has a Grown. Her little sister has an invisible friend but with their mother planning Lou's betrothal, the sisters are fighting with the expectations of society whilst navigating their life without their father and what they want from their own lives.

Jay is Number Two. He's been by Peter's side for as long as he can remember but their leader has been captured by Blackbeard and the magic of the island is in trouble.

Faced with a the prospecting of marrying the bland son of a family friend, Lou panics and finds herself in a land of savage children with no idea how to get back.

Combining the dark retelling with the Hook origin story was perfect. I found it slow to get into but once Lou reached the island, it definitely stepped up a notch. And whilst I struggled with this book, the ending was beautiful - harrowing, but beautiful.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an e-arc of this book for an honest review!

I’m teetering between giving this a 2.5⭐️ or 3⭐️. This book has a really promising storyline but I feel like the delivery fell a little flat. This is not your regular Peter Pan retelling. The characters deal with much more difficult and darker troubles. There was discussion about the pains of growing up and family/childhood trauma. One thing I loved was the scenery descriptions and how I could really picture myself in the scene every time. The ending also had me really emotional, which I love!

However, the plot became a bit confusing between present day/her imaginations? I also found almost every character insufferable and was not rooting for anyone….(except Benji). Lou was very whiney & I did not care of Hook either. The conversations sometimes seemed too juvenile and I could not stand the “pirate talk”.

Overall, I loved the commentary on grown ups and how they forget to have fun and seem to never be fully satisfied with what they have. I just couldn’t bring myself to care about the main characters so it made this book harder for me to get through. I think this book would work well for those who are looking for a book with a deeper meaning behind the story and a book with little to no romance plot!

Was this review helpful?

A rollercoaster. You have to make sure that you are paying attention, the book does jump in timelines, but the author was fabulous in marking things with actual ages, HUGE HELP. I thank you for that. I actually haven't read many of the various versions of Peter Pan and that world. Lord knows, this was a rollercoaster. I didn't expect the ending at all, this is spoiler free. I thank netgalley for letting me read this as an ARC reviewer. For this throw out everything you know of Peter Pan, and I think it will help immensely. You could also see how the author was influenced by her children. I loved it. Just stick with it!

Was this review helpful?

I'm intrigued by this book's premise and look forward to reading another peter pan retelling. But this book just wasn't it for me. I feel like the FMC (Lou) is not likable, making it so hard to connect with her. She's just so unlikeable, but at the same time, I understand why she acts the way she does, but I wish she had more personality.

The plot is pretty entertaining once I immerse myself in the story, but it's hard to get through for the first half of this book. I quite like the second part of this book, it's more complicated, but I still hope that Lou & Jay's dialogue could be more natural and not forced. Or is it just me?

What I like about this book is actually about Lou's journey of self-discovery, about how she forgot what it was like to be a child when she grew up and finally started to remember bits by bits of her memories as a child, and even though I'm not particularly fond of her character, it's heartwrenching, painful and real.

Overall 3,5⭐
It's standalone, so that's also a plus point from me.

Thank you NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

I love the premise of this book and the cover is beautiful but ultimately I had a hard time getting into the story and didn’t finish. I couldn’t connect with the characters and the writing style wasn’t for me. I feel like a lot of people will enjoy this (especially those who enjoy retellings) but it wasn’t for me.

Was this review helpful?

The way the author capture Lou's feeling was something I never seen before and really liked. I also liked how the conversations felt so natural, so on this things I can only say - Bravo 👏👏👏

When it comes to my own personal feelings I did not like the beginning and I did not like the end, BUT I loved the story, the idea and the characters!

The only downside to the story was that sometimes it was unclear what was happening. The author wrapped the words in so much that you missed what she wanted to say.

Was this review helpful?

Having just come fresh from reading a Peter Pan retelling in which the baddie isn't Captain Hook, for a change, the one thing whirling around my head on finishing "Light of the Second Star" was: how do you even manage to write a story supposed to redeem Hook in which you make him even less likable than in the original J. M. Barrie novel?

And not because this Hook is badder and eviller, no. Because he's so dull and whiny you have to wonder how exactly this little chit could become the Big Bad Pirate of Neverland. And with such a frail bird's name, Jay. No wonder neither Peter nor the rest in Neverland respect Hook.

And this Jay/Hook is supposed to be a protector of children, to boot. An imaginary friend in charge of looking over a little girl that grows up into a depressive woman he develops feelings for. This whole arc read like a pseudo-Wendy storyline.

I'd honestly take evil Hook over defanged Hook. At least he had a personality, had goals, had a spine, and didn't need to villainise Peter to be his own self. He could've had an interesting story that explained his origins and his motivation for becoming Captain Hook without ending up the cliché that is Jay.

Never read a retelling of a fairy tale/classic in which the villain is the hero right after reading a retelling of a fairy tale/classic in which the hero is the villain.

Was this review helpful?

3.75 stars

This story is a dark Peter Pan prequel that follows main characters Lou and Jay through various different timelines in their life. I’m not going to go too into detail about specifics of the book as I went in partially blind, and I truly believe that is the best way to do so. I had quickly read the blurb once but did not go over it again when it was actually time for me to pick it up and read it. This made the ending so much more impactful and devastating and allowed me to experience the story without any bias.
While I loved the storyline, I did feel like the beginning dragged on a bit much for my liking. As well, there was multiple POVs and switching timelines that sometimes made the story difficult to follow and I got confused at times trying to figure out where I was.
Overall, I really enjoyed this authors take on a Peter Pan prequel. Please check content warnings before you read!

Was this review helpful?

3.5/5 - I was really excited to read this book, it was very interesting and covered some deep and dark subjects. I loved some parts of the book but at times was a bit confused with the different timelines.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Read it! Buy it! It’s everything you want and more! Just impulse buy it! The author is gifted and knows how to tell a story that draws you in. I like the foreshadowing and symbolism the author used and how captivating the story is!
This book was gifted to me by NetGallery, all opinions are my own.

Was this review helpful?

2/5 stars.

I went into this novel expecting your typical Peter Pan prequel and received much more. However, the writing style and switch in points of view made the plot confusing to follow. While I appreciated the character development and increasing dark atmosphere of the novel, I was not able to experience it as much as I hoped because I was often confused as to what was going on. I also wish the story didn't spend so much time on the exposition, because this dragged out the beginning chapters and was different tone-wise from the rest of the story.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Was this review helpful?